La Riviera was a star Mediterranean restaurant at the erstwhile Pullman hotel in Gurgaon that specialised in French cuisine. I remember making a couple of visits to the restaurant and coming back very satisfied with the food while cribbing on the miniscule portion size and pocket heavy menu pricing. Obviously, it became an expensive proposition for the value conscious Gurgaon diners and it soon closed down for lack of customers despite some great dishes.
Pullman was rechristened Le Meridien in March, 2015 and only had the coffee shop functional there for the last 18 months or so without any specialty restaurant. Finally, under the new executive Chef Suprabath Roy ably assisted by Sous Chef Amit Kumar, the specialty Italian restaurant Bella Cucina (meaning beautiful kitchen) started a week ago in the same space that earlier housed La Riviera. The refined and understated interiors of the erstwhile La Riviera haven’t changed much in the present avatar except that it now has 3 PDR’s (Personal Dining Rooms). The chandelier at the big PDR makes a very soothing and soft chime sound with the blow of air-conditioning that hits it. The Italian pictures in one of the PDRs and a small fireplace in the waiting room are welcome additions. That said, the star of the entire restaurant is the Molteni showcase open kitchen that costs a whopping Rs. 1.25cr plus. I might be wrong on the pricing as on a previous occasion, the cost quoted to me was just the double.
The biggest change, however, is not the menu which still is as interesting but the pricing. The portion sizes are much bigger and the pricing perhaps less than half for many of the dishes not accounting for the time value of money.
We started with Mushroom Cappuccino soup that came with porcini brioche topped with olive dust. I could smell and taste truffle oil. The tasty soup used porcini, Portobello and button mushrooms. I liked the fact that the froth on the soup lasted really long in spite of the soup being on the side of being a little more hot than the warm temperature in which cappuccino is usually served to maintain the froth.
Another addition to the kitchen is an inbuilt pizza oven. The best part about the oven is that it has a rotating plate (just like a microwave), ensuring that the multiple pizzas when kept inside are evenly cooked. I don’t remember seeing this feature anywhere in Delhi-NCR so far. My daughter enjoyed the Bianco pizza that has potatoes as topping and sour cream as the sauce. The base was crisp (imported flour is used) and milk is used instead of water for making the pizza dough to get the crisp texture.
The Bella Cucina version of Caprese Salad came with lot of drama where Sous Chef Amit Kumar gave a molecular twist to the ingredients. While I loved the tomato froth that was served on the side, I missed the bocconcini cheese chewy bite as it was replaced by creamy mozzarella. My wife’s Compressed Beetroot Salad that came with goat cheese snow was just perfect.
If there is any modern day Eklavya in today’s world then I would like to give that title to Sous Chef Amit Kumar. Coming from a small village in Champaran, Bihar, he has never visited Italy but has keenly followed all chefs on social media and otherwise to get inspiration from their creation to bring out this menu that is largely from Central & North Italy. Thankfully, no one is asking him to sacrifice his thumb for the teachings.
Trying to avoid meats, I focus on the seafood. If you are fond of ravioli, don’t miss the Prawn Ravioli. The Parmesan Crusted Scallop is beautifully seared. I would have liked bit less of semolina to be used in the parmesan crisp that was served on the side as it made it a bit hard from the middle. I had one of the best Chilean Sea Bass – the skin was crisp and the inside as juicy and flaky as one can imagine. Served along with coriander-vanilla sauce, this is a must try in the menu.
The meal ended with the Tiramisu where truffles were plated like coffee beans while my daughter enjoyed Banana-Strawberry Ice Cream in a cone that came beautifully plated.
Before parting, a few words on the alcohol on offer here. The wine cellar boasts of some brands of liquor not available elsewhere in Gurgaon. For instance, I have never seen a 75% v/v bottle of Bacardi or Liquor Luxardo or Chartreuse. A special mention for Sweet Spiced Rob Roy that is a twist on Rob Roy, a classic (uses sweet spice infused Cabernet Sauvignon) served by the restaurant manager, Dhinender Kandpal. Given my limited capacity to drink alcohol, perhaps I shall share try more cocktails with these ingredients next time.
I will soon try more meats and dishes from the Bella Cucina menu. This visit certainly deserves many more revisits.
Ratings (Out of 5)
Food: 4.0 | Ambience: 4.0 | Service: 4.5 | Overall: 4.0
Meal for Two: Rs3500 ++ | Wheel Chair Friendly: Yes | Credit Card: Yes | Alcohol: Yes
Address: Bella Cucina, Le Meridien, Sector 26, MG Road, Gurgaon-Delhi border, Gurgaon | Phone: 0124-4992000
Disclaimer: This review was done on an invitation from the restaurant. Due judgement and care has been applied by the author to remain objective and unbiased in the review, but readers need to consider this review keeping this fact in mind.
